EU proposes changes for livestock transportation
The EU Commission is currently drafting new proposals to limit journey times and reduce stocking rates on livestock transport vehicles.
The new proposal, which is still at an early stage, comes four years after the Commission introduced legislation governing the transport of animals. The current legislation took 10 years to design when it came into effect in 2005. It brought a lot of changes to the way hauliers operate and delivered huge benefits in animal welfare, although industry stakeholders agree in the system is working well.
Weanling tranportation
The current rules stipulate that for weanlings, a livestock transporter can travel for 14 hours, rest for one hour and then travel for a further 14 hours, before stopping for 24 hours. This is known as 14-1-14. The new regulations propose a limit of 20 hours travel, nine hours rest and, then, 20 hours travel with a 24-hour rest period, before further travel.
There is also a proposal to introduce a satellite tracking system for hauliers. The Commission are keen to collect data on authorised transporters and journey logs, etc.
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